Trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon's suspension reduced to six months, down from ten, over an incident involving the transport of a deceased horse. The penalty underscores concerns about the sport's reputation and integrity.
Trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon has seen partial success in appealing the duration of his recent suspension, which has now been reduced from ten months to six, with the potential for an additional reduction to three months.
Hanlon, the trainer of Hewick, the winner of last year's King George VI Chase, was determined by the Referrals Committee of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) to have behaved in a manner that 'caused significant prejudice to the integrity, proper conduct, and good reputation of the sport' regarding the removal of a deceased horse from his yard earlier this year.
The horse was transported on an open trailer towed by Hanlon's branded horsebox, but the body became visible to the public when a tarpaulin came loose during the journey. This incident was captured on video by a member of the public and extensively shared on social media, drawing substantial media attention. As a result, the IHRB filed charges against Hanlon for actions that attracted 'significant public criticism and negative commentary' about both him and the racing industry as a whole.
Hanlon initially tried to postpone the suspension, which was scheduled to begin on December 1, until April. This delay was to provide time to prepare a legal case and make necessary business arrangements. He contended that a financial fine would be more suitable, but the appeals panel disagreed, stating that his actions 'surpassed the threshold for merely a financial penalty.'
The trainer also contested the length of the suspension, arguing that it failed to take into account the differences with similar cases involving trainer Gordon Elliott and jockey Rob James, both of whom were given 12-month bans with six and eight months suspended, respectively. In its decision, the appeals panel recognized that the IHRB should have imposed a shorter sanction of six months, highlighting that Hanlon's actions, though negligent, were not intentional or willful like those of Elliott and James.
The panel acknowledged that Hanlon's negligence happened in one short incident, justifying a reduction in his suspension. As a result, Hanlon's training license will be suspended for six months beginning December 1, with a potential for a conditional suspension during the last three months of that time frame.
